In development…
Two close friends both suffered from the same aggressive form of cancer. After years of treatment, one lived and the other died. And while many variables factored into what happened, the woman who survived — reporter Ibby Caputo — couldn't help wondering what role race had played in the outcome.
This lecture discuss accountability and transparency in cancer care. The focus of this presentation will be on the ACCURE study, which is a systems change intervention trial to increase racial equity in treatment of early stage breast and lung cancer at two cancer centers. This study determined the need for real-time electronic signals to notify the navigator of delayed treatment milestones. These signals will improve early intervention of these "pressure points" and will ultimately aid cancer patients in completing their treatments.
How Structural Racism Impacts Cancer Treatment and Outcomes
Black patients with breast cancer and other malignancies face historical inequities that are ingrained but not inevitable. In this American Cancer Society article, the second of a 2‐part series, we explore the consequences of and potential solutions to racism and inequality in cancer care.
In Chicago “women who are poor, are minorities, or are on public insurance are 40% less likely to live near a breast‐imaging center of excellence than their white counterparts. Instead, hospitals and clinics that serve minority neighborhoods are often underfunded and unable to keep up with advances or new recommendations. Because the patient population is overwhelmingly black, they tend to bear the burden of the ‘inequality in quality.’”
- David Ansell, MD, MPH
Across the US, black people are dying from Covid-19 at disproportionately high rates. While there are many different factors at play behind the stark racial disparities — there’s one possible reason that’s been lurking in the air for decades: pollution.
The long history of segregation and housing discrimination has long put black people at greater risk of living near chemical plants, factories and highways, exposing them to higher levels of air pollutants. These pollutants have had a chronically negative impact on health, leading to conditions like hypertension and asthma. Now, those same diseases are associated with severe cases of Covid-19, and showing that where you live can determine whether you survive from Covid-19. While this video from Vox is focused on Covid-19, the same pollution increases the risk for cancer.
Read more about Cancer Alley from ProPublica/ The Times-Picayune & The Advocate (and here), and The Guardian.
In considering health disparities around cancer, one must take into context the impact of housing discrimination and environmental racism. The combined effects of redlining with the disproportionate presence of pollution in black and minority neighborhoods has resulted in higher cancer rates among people of color.
Resources
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